Online sales in the UK made up 18.7 per cent of all non-food sales in May

Posted on June 17, 2014.

Some 18.7 per cent of all non-food purchases were made online in May – the second-highest figure ever seen, a new report from the British Retail Consortium (BRC) reveals.

According to freshbusinessthinking.com, online sales of non-food items rose by 17 per cent compared to the same time the previous year. This is the highest growth seen since BRC’s records began, but only when Christmas and New Year are excluded.

Footwear and clothing were the sectors that pushed online growth the most. Clothing has seen its strongest month since last Christmas and footwear’s previous best performance was in December 2012, reports internetretailing.net. Helen Dickinson, director general of the BRC, says the sector has seen such a turnaround thanks to the wider range of items available online.

“This month sees the highest growth in online sales of clothing for five months and the proportion of purchases we are making online has grown several percentage points in a year,” she explains. “This also represents the highest penetration ever recorded for clothing since the inception of the online monitor.”

She adds that World Cup-themed items are also performing well already across all age groups and genders. Moreover, seasonal clothing items are doing well as the weather heats up, with sales of sandals, light jerseys and canvas shoes all rising.